Every story, movie, or show, has a beginning, middle and end. It is a journey that has meaning. If every journey was the same, it wouldn't be entertaining. Twice in my career have I been told my program started slow. Today was the second.
The first few minutes on stage, I get to know, or "read" the audience. Some are there with you, others are not so sure. Some will have no desire to leave their world behind to join you. The goal is to bring them all on board so that by the end of the journey, everyone in the room is engaged and rolling with laughter. Sometimes that is an easy task. Theater shows are usually filled with people who want to be entertained. That is why they came out.
Sometimes the audience is much more complicated. The show involved was one of those. The program followed a long day of meetings, a huge banquet and an endless procession of people crossing the stage for awards. The audience was assembled from places scattered across the country. The audience was tired. It took time to pull them in. The client's final quote was glowing about the positive feedback and the fact the entire group had been extremely entertained.
While I realize the journey started slow for a reason, the client did not. Thankfully the outcome was exactly what they wanted!
Two "mentions" over this many years and this many shows may not be much - but I plan to look into things further. Time to re-write...
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1 comment:
Don't you just hate it, when the show starts late, they give out awards, make a speech, bore everyone to death, then expect you to entertain them? You just have to love it. That's show biz!
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